| John Boxtel | |
| Birth Date: | 1930 6, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Goirle, Netherlands |
| Death Place: | Canada |
| Nationality: | Canadian |
| Field: | Sculptor |
| Training: | Technical School in Tilburg, Netherlands |
John Boxtel (21 June 1930 – 1 October 2022) was a Dutch-Canadian sculptor and art teacher. His works include sculpture, woodcarving, architectural drafting, design, and building.
Born in Goirle, Netherlands, Boxtel studied architecture at the Technical School in Tilburg, Netherlands. After emigrating to Canada in 1954, he studied at the University of Toronto, Ontario College of Art in Toronto, Ontario, and the Artists' Workshop in London, Ontario. In 1967, he became an art teacher.
Boxtel had gallery exhibitions in Toronto, Hamilton, Montreal, Kingston, Boston, and the Netherlands. His public commissioned works for monuments were done in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, and United States. Working with the Ukrainian Canadian community John crafted several statues recalling Canada's first national internment operations of 1914–1920, that can be seen in Banff National Park, in Kapuskasing, Spirit Lake, on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislature and elsewhere across the country. He spoke movingly about his commitment to telling the story of these "enemy aliens" through his artwork in one segment of Ryan Boyko's film series, "The Camps."
Boxtel died on 1 October 2022, at the age of 92.[1]
His works include:
Boxtel was also the author of six books: Go Fly a Kite: The Kite-Builder's Manual; Under the Wing of an Angel; Thousand Island Pioneers; Beware of Black Widows and Spiders; For All He Gave Me: Stories of My Father; and Studio: Sculptures of John Boxtel.[3]